After reading "The Garden Party" by Katherine Mansfield, I wrote what I thought were the interpretive strategies used in the piece. I then compared my writing with a few examples given by students and colleagues of Thomas C. Foster. He gave three examples of writing, each getting progressively more detailed and advanced. My writing was comparable to the second piece. It was detailed, but not quite as thorough as the last piece that was shown. Foster said that any of the examples were worthy of an A. I thought that the main character, Laura, was torn by emotion and what she was taught growing up. She noticed that gap in social classes, but was unsure how to approach someone from a lower socioeconomic class.
Laura was compared to Persephone from Greek mythology, which only makes your appreciation for the short story greater. I would not have originally detected the details that drew comparisons between the two people, but after reading the essay, I completely understand the similarities in the characters. This piece could be interpreted in many ways, but some perspectives are highly insightful and seem almost as though the author is there to tell exactly what they were writing about. The essay writing by the past student of Foster's takes a story that requires little thought to read, and makes it so much deeper and meaningful than just a girl who wants to help, but is scared of people unlike the people that she socializes with. The reader's appreciation can instantly grow just by reading this essay after reading the short story.
Laura was compared to Persephone from Greek mythology, which only makes your appreciation for the short story greater. I would not have originally detected the details that drew comparisons between the two people, but after reading the essay, I completely understand the similarities in the characters. This piece could be interpreted in many ways, but some perspectives are highly insightful and seem almost as though the author is there to tell exactly what they were writing about. The essay writing by the past student of Foster's takes a story that requires little thought to read, and makes it so much deeper and meaningful than just a girl who wants to help, but is scared of people unlike the people that she socializes with. The reader's appreciation can instantly grow just by reading this essay after reading the short story.